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Stolen Bees

Probably going to happen a lot this year.......

Friend of mine had 168 taken in the Bakersfield area yesterday. Brand is CHC.......every box and frame are branded. Ten frame, white, deep and a half equipment all in very good shape. If anyone runs across that brand, PM me and I'll put you in touch with him.

Re: Stolen Bees

Originally Posted by dback

Probably going to happen a lot this year.......

Friend of mine had 168 taken in the Bakersfield area yesterday. Brand is CHC.......every box and frame are branded. Ten frame, white, deep and a half equipment all in very good shape. If anyone runs across that brand, PM me and I'll put you in touch with him.

With all the ropes owned by all the bee guys it seems like a risky proposition to be trying dumb things like this. Every bee guy needs to keep his eyes open, shotgun loaded and large limb on the tall oak tree all primed up.

Re: Stolen Bees

Seen some double deep ten framers on Craigslist out of Sacramento, the $100 price tag is throwing a flag to me.

I said before bees were even being staged that there would be a lot of hives stolen and I got a lashing for saying that, it's only common sense, and with a shortage of bees and higher prices, I imagine maybe even more than usual this year.

Went to the foothills today to look at 4-h project goats and seen a lot of boxes, but most were deep in the orchards. Might have even seen Jarrets boxes, only blue boxes I seen today!

Re: Stolen Bees

Originally Posted by BeeGhost

I got a lashing for saying that, Jarrets boxes, only blue boxes I seen today!

BG, I read that thread that you took a lashing over.... I should did not see anything wrong with your post, I always enjoy the other persons veiw.
Blue boxes.... got some over by you on HWY 33. enjoy the bloom.

Re: Stolen Bees

Thanks Keith.....
Yes, they were already in the orchard......someone came in and took an entire middle row out of the center of the orchard is my understanding. These are not the first I've heard of this year but it is the largest number and I didn't have details on the others. I spoke with another friend yesterday (I won't mention his name until he gives me permission) that says he is going to post a site listing all the stolen bees he knows of so folks can watch for different brands.......I don't know if this site would consider doing the same.

Re: Stolen Bees

Some net savvy person needs to come up with a centralized internet lost/found/stolen "bulletin board" linked to grower websites for maximum viewing. Pretty good chance some grower may have already unknowingly found a home for them at top dollar. Could Beesource create such a forum and would Blue Diamond agree to provide a direct link to that forum in their pollination section? Just thinking.

"People will generally accept facts as truth only if the facts agree with what they already believe."- Andy Rooney

Re: Stolen Bees

Educate us a bit here Barry. If a specific forum was established on here where stolen hives could be reported complete with photos and as much supporting identification as possible. Would the main complication be to get another site (such as Blue Diamond) to agree to post a forum link on their site or is there a broader picture that I am not seeing here? CG3 does bring up a very good point though. There isnt a lot of incentive for a grower to play detective if the result might be losing the hives that they just paid for.

"People will generally accept facts as truth only if the facts agree with what they already believe."- Andy Rooney

Re: Stolen Bees

I understand Barry, what I was reaching for was if there were any complications from a technical or even legal standpoint. Another thought is that, at least in the big picture, there should be a great deal of interest among the growers to cut down on any trafficking of illegal bees that goes on because it adversely affects their growers in two ways. In this case someone lost some of the bees they had contracted for and secondly, the fear of theft is a major reason some beekeepers are hesitant to haul their bees out there.

"People will generally accept facts as truth only if the facts agree with what they already believe."- Andy Rooney

Re: Stolen Bees

I think that rule #1 sould be that stolen hive threads could only be started in 1st person.
If the individual is not a member of Beesource, then they would need to sign up and post about stolen hives in there own words.
That qualifies as obvious consent and assigns fault for any accuracy problems.
Full contact information should also be posted.
Just put it all right out in plain sight, up front to show that they are earnest.
Give the option also of posting law enforcement contact info that are on the case for anonymous tips.
Book 'em, Danno!

I have exactly ONE hive more than you.
That makes my opinion beyond question.